Ever find the perfect shoes but they weren't the perfect color?
Here's my situation...I found this vintagey style, multi-color dress that I love and needed some shoes to go with it. I had an idea in my head of what I was looking for but, I'm on a tight budget so my options were limited. Well lucky day, I found these beauties on clearance at Walmart for...drum roll...$3! Even though I knew these were not going to be quite the right color, they were exactly the style I wanted and there was no way I could pass them up for that price. I'm so not a pink girl, my wardrobe consists of black white and grey. I cant even believe I'm going to wear pink shoes and a flowery dress! Bonus: The fashion expert on The Today Show this morning says pastels, especially pink, are IT this spring!
Now, when I was in high school, some of the girls tried spray painting their shoes to match their prom dresses and it didn't work out too well, cracks everywhere! These shoes are covered in fabric, textured to look like...snake skin? I wasn't sure how the shiny parts of the fabric were going to take the acrylic paint I decided on, so I tested a small section. After the paint was dry, it ended up rubbing right off with my finger.
I used some fine grit sandpaper to rub off the shiny stuff. This decision was good and bad. Yes the fabric took the paint just fine after that but the sandpaper pulled up the thread in all the stitching on the top of the shoe, which wasn't really noticeable until I got the paint on it. At this point I started to think spray paint would have been a better idea and would probably have worked out fine if I used primer first...too late now!
I used some fine grit sandpaper to rub off the shiny stuff. This decision was good and bad. Yes the fabric took the paint just fine after that but the sandpaper pulled up the thread in all the stitching on the top of the shoe, which wasn't really noticeable until I got the paint on it. At this point I started to think spray paint would have been a better idea and would probably have worked out fine if I used primer first...too late now!How I Did It
First, tape off the bottom with some masking tape. I took acrylic craft paint and mixed it 2:1 with some fabric medium. For the first coat of paint I did a white base layer. After that I followed with two coats of the pink, also mixed with the fabric medium and allowed each coat to dry in between. After that I just went back and touched up areas I missed. I pulled off my tape and cleaned up any paint that got past the tape and lightly sprayed a layer of glossy clear acrylic sealer.
Fabulous or Fail?
Even though I took a lot of time making sure the tape was just right, the edges where the paint met the sole was a little rough when I pulled the tape off. The raised up stitching and the less than perfect edges aren't that attractive up close but its not that bad. Looking at them while worn, almost perfect! Who's really going to notice my feet anyway? My main fear with painting these shoes has been the paint cracking but I've been wearing these around the house and it's all good so far.
People kill me when I they say "Oh I could never do that because I'm not crafty" Yes, I like doing crafty projects and most of the time it works out for me. But here's the thing, at least half the time I don't have a clue what I'm doing! When trying stuff for the first time, you never know what's going to happen. The difference between me and the people who think they aren't "crafty" is that I'm not afraid to try. It's debatable whether these shoes were a success, but it's ok. I'm going to rock 'em anyway and be proud that I gave it my best shot.
**UPDATE!!! You can see how my shoes held up after the wedding, click HERE
Check my Gallery for more projects I've been working on.
Tidak ada komentar